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Average grass growth on our measuring farms was 49kg DM/ha/day this week. On the ground, there are contrasting views on the current dry spell. The recent lack of moisture has been akin to a release valve for those on heavier soils, who are finally at full steam in terms of grazing. These farms are in the higher percentile of growth rates recorded the past week.
At the other end of the scale, farmers on free-draining soils are bemoaning the lack of moisture, as growth rates begin to taper off. Many of these producers are stocked relatively high, with big grass demands, and will begin to feel the pinch soon if rain doesn’t come.
There is minimal precipitation forecast in the short term for the island, with a similar outlook on long range forecasts (to next weekend) – though these are generally taken with a pinch of salt.
What can be done to stretch out a thirsty grazing platform? At this point in the year, there are few classes of animal that we can afford to restrict nutritionally. However, autumn-calved cows can be weaned and shut inside temporarily, provided calves are six months old. This could help to alleviate pressure if grass is tight.
Other options include supplementation with good grass silage or concentrates. At this point, I would be going with the silage option, unless we are trying to get magnesium into cows or facilitate animal collection for AI.
It is vital that those on dry ground have a firm handle on growth and demand at this point. This way, the guess work is removed from grassland management decisions. Some or all of a paddock previously earmarked for removal could be an option for strip grazing now, if growth has slowed.
Beef cattle could potentially get a section of silage ground, ideally where there has been no nitrogen spread for two weeks. There are issues turning breeding stock to ground that recently received high rates of nitrogen fertiliser, in that it can lead to embryonic death in early pregnancy, as well as scouring – a precursor for tetany in cows rearing a calf.
Do a budget of what’s in the yard and assume that poor, average or good-yielding first silage cuts will produce seven, eight or nine tonnes per acre respectively.
Co Louth
System: suckler to bull beef
Soil: free-draining
Avg farm cover (kg DM/ha): n/a
Grass growth (kg DM/ha/day): n/a
Grass has been tight on the farm over the last few weeks, as growth has been slow. Thankfully this is starting to improve, and a small drop of moisture to kick-start growth would be welcomed, as ground is extremely dry. All autumn-calving cows were weaned last week and are being restricted on grass, so this helps to ease the demand. Silage ground is closed over three weeks at this stage and it got 2,500 gallons of slurry and three bags of CAN per acre and it is starting to grow well. This week I reseeded six acres of ground, which was previously in tillage, so this will help when it comes into the rotation. Calving has finished and currently the spring-calving herd is split in two groups. One group is being served with AI and the other group with a Charolais stock bull. Last year’s spring-born bulls are on ad lib meals at this point, and I expect some to be slaughter-fit in the near future.
Co Roscommon
System: suckler to weanling
Soil: free-draining loam
Avg farm cover (kg DM/ha): 587
Grass growth (kg DM/ha/day): n/a
I’ve 16 days ahead of me here, so I’m not tight for grass. The rise in temperatures is welcome, but a drop of rain now would really drive grass on. I’ll hopefully get my silage cut at the end of the month, with more of an emphasis on quality than bulk. Cows are going into covers of 1,400kg DM/ha, and up until last week I was going straight in after them with a bag of 18-6-12. For the time being, I’ll be holding off on the fertiliser, as I’ve more paddocks coming back into the rotation and my wedge is looking very healthy. Breeding kicked off last weekend. I purchased a five-star Limousin bull recently (replacement and terminal) and he’s running with the best half of the cows, so hopefully he’ll breed some nice replacements. I also have a five-star terminal Limousin bull running with 22 beefier cows with poorer maternal genetics. I have 12 home-bred heifers, which will be let to a bull on 15 May. Holding off these few weeks also gives the heifers an extra month to mature.
Co Tipperary
System: suckler to steer/calf to beef
Soil: variable
Avg farm cover (kg DM/ha): 815
Grass growth (kg DM/ha/day): 33
We recently reseeded 22 acres of land that will accommodate the autumn-calving herd. It was burned off with glyphosate and left for three weeks to achieve a good kill. Three tonnes of lime were spread per acre. It got two runs of a power harrow to achieve a fine seed bed and then a final run with the one-pass machine to incorporate the seed. I used a grass mix containing 2.5kg Abergain, 3.5kg AberChoice, 2kg AberClyde, 3 kg Drumbo and 0.5kg White Clover. I followed it up with three bags of 10-10-20 per acre. I will spray with a post-emergence spray in the coming weeks, once the crop develops. As this land is index 1 for P & K, I will follow up with two bags of 18-6-12 after each grazing for the remainder of the year.
Silage will be cut in late-May. It received 3,000 gallons of slurry per acre in January and two bags of urea on April 10 after a spring grazing.
Derrypatrick Herd, Co Meath
System: suckler to beef
Soil: mixed
Avg farm cover (kg DM/ha): 820
Grass growth (kg DM/ha/day): 50
Calving 2017 has just finished and – with the exception of the freshly-calved cows and bulls indoors for finishing – all stock are out at grass. The sunshine that is forecast this week prompted us to remove some heavy covers from the grazing platform in order to maximise forage quality. Breeding 2017 began this week, and providing grass of excellent quality will lay the foundations for a successful season. Fertiliser following grazing is being applied in the form of 18-6-12. The reason for using compound is to raise the soil phosphorus levels for the planned sowing of clover across the farm while ensuring nitrogen is also being applied to support grass growth. Yearlings at grass were weighed a fortnight ago, and we are happy with their current performance. Since turnout on 10 March, steers have achieved an average daily gain of 1.4kg/day and currently weigh 467kg, while the heifers have achieved gains of 0.90kg/day and currently weigh 410kg.
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